Trading on Ghana's Fixed Income Market (GFIM) surged to GHS 12.82 billion in the week ending August 14, 2026. This represents a substantial 42.25% increase from the GHS 9.01 billion recorded the previous week. The significant rise in activity, amounting to GHS 3.81 billion, signals a notable improvement in secondary-market engagement.
The primary driver of this market expansion was renewed investor interest in Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) bonds. These restructured government securities dominated trading, accounting for 67.42% of total GFIM activity. DDEP bonds recorded GHS 8.64 billion in turnover, marking a 52.43% increase from GHS 5.67 billion the week before. This reinforces their position as the main source of liquidity in Ghana's longer-dated government securities market.
This heightened activity in DDEP bonds reflects growing investor confidence in Ghana's economic stability following the debt restructuring. The market's focus on these longer-dated instruments suggests that institutional portfolio managers are actively re-engaging with the post-restructuring government bond curve. This trend is crucial for Ghana's broader economic recovery and its ability to manage public debt effectively. It also indicates a shift in investor preference towards instruments offering potentially higher returns over a longer horizon.
While DDEP bonds led the surge, Treasury bills also maintained a significant presence. Treasury bill trading increased modestly by 4.64% to GHS 3.30 billion, up from GHS 3.16 billion. They represented 25.78% of the total market activity. The combined trading of DDEP bonds and Treasury bills reached approximately GHS 11.95 billion, making up over 93.00% of the week's total activity. This highlights the continued importance of both short-term and long-term government instruments in the market.
The increase in fixed income trading suggests that Ghana's financial markets are gradually stabilizing after recent economic challenges. The strong performance of DDEP bonds, in particular, indicates that the government's efforts to restructure its debt are yielding positive results in the secondary market. This could lead to improved investor sentiment and potentially lower borrowing costs for the government in the future. Market participants will closely monitor these trends for signs of sustained recovery and liquidity.
Sell-buyback transactions also saw a substantial increase, with turnover reaching GHS 797.65 million. This was a significant jump from GHS 177.29 million the previous week, representing growth of approximately 349.91%. This segment accounted for 6.22% of total market turnover. The rise in sell-buyback activity suggests increased use of government securities for short-term liquidity and financing needs within the financial system. This mechanism helps financial institutions manage their cash flows efficiently.
Corporate securities, while still a small part of the market, recorded one of the largest percentage increases. Trading in corporate bonds rose to GHS 71.78 million from just GHS 4.22 million. Despite this growth, corporate securities still represented only 0.56% of overall GFIM activity. This highlights the limited depth of Ghana’s secondary corporate bond market. Developing this segment remains important for companies to rely more on capital-market financing instead of traditional bank loans.
Within the DDEP curve, the eight-year securities were the most actively traded, recording approximately GHS 3.58 billion. This was sharply higher than GHS 903.60 million in the previous period. Four-year DDEP bonds followed with GHS 1.47 billion, compared with GHS 542.66 million previously. Nine-year securities generated GHS 1.10 billion, while five-year DDEP turnover climbed to GHS 728.34 million. This distribution across various maturities shows broad investor engagement beyond just the shortest-dated bonds.
This shift in trading was accompanied by generally lower yields across several points of the curve. For example, the nine-year DDEP yield declined to 14.60% from 15.14%, a fall of 54 basis points. The 11-year yield dropped 44 basis points to 14.95%, and the 14-year yield eased 31 basis points to 15.26%. Lower yields indicate stronger pricing for these bonds, meaning investors are willing to accept less return for holding them. This is a positive sign for the government, as it suggests reduced perceived risk and potentially lower future borrowing costs. The eight-year yield also declined to 14.62% from 14.78%, while the 12-year yield eased to 15.20% from 15.32%, further indicating improved market conditions for medium- and long-term government debt.